


6 + 1 things Leon does with his hair

by FireandLightning



Category: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse)
Genre: Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Making Out, POV Alternating, leon gets murderous when people keep talking about his hair, leon has fabulous hair, really a lot of chreon just getting to know each other, tags will be updated as I go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-27
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:13:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27736678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireandLightning/pseuds/FireandLightning
Summary: DSO Agent Leon S. Kennedy has a secret - being tired of his fringe perpetually falling into his eyes at home, he resorts to some "more embarrassing methods" to keep his hair away from his face. No one has ever found out so far, but he keeps finding himself in situations where his secret nearly gets discovered, by none other than one Chris Redfield. Leon thinks he may be destroying his image in the BSAA captain's eyes, but Chris might just think he's cute.
Relationships: Leon S. Kennedy/Chris Redfield
Comments: 19
Kudos: 135





	1. Ponytail

The doorbell rings, and Leon winces, pulling his gaze away from the mirror. He’s spent the last few minutes trying to flatten his fringe.

  


Because although Leon was perfectly fine with having his fringe down when he was out, he kind of preferred it to be up when he was at home. Particularly when he was trying to cook stuff, lean over to get something, and his hair promptly ended up getting stuck in some condiments he was going to throw together. Well, he didn't need to keep up his cool image at home so he might as well, it was also less hot, it didn't get in the way as much, he…

  


Well, Leon’s just trying to find excuses for himself, considering he fights BOWs all the same with that gorgeous fringe. It’s about time he admitted it.

  


He’s just trying to find excuses for himself to be wearing ornaments in and doing ridiculous things to his hair. Apart from the fact that he looks kinda cute, in his own opinion. (If he ever actually dared to ask anyone else for their opinion, they would have one hundred per cent agreed with Leon.) His friends and acquaintances would never let him live it down if they knew that a top-class government agent liked to tie his hair into a ponytail - a  _ very  _ short one from the side of his head, but a ponytail nevertheless - when he was alone at home.

  


So far, Leon’s managed to hide his habit pretty well. He has nearly slipped up a few times when Claire came over to his house, but manages to remember in time. Obviously he doesn’t do it at work, so it’s really only when he’s at home alone for, say, a full day, that he lets his guard down a little and does it for pure convenience of not having to whip his fringe out of his face every time he wants to actually see what he’s cooking, or what he’s scrolling on his phone. There’s a lot more looking down than looking up and forward when he’s at home as compared to when he’s on a mission looking around for potential threats, and that’s when his fringe really gets in the way.

  


Leon would  _ never _ get rid of it, however, so instead he indulges in certain “hair control” products. Which eventually led to him being in this current situation.

  


Chris, in a bid to try and bond with him, asked if he could come over to hang out, maybe have some sort of guys’ sleepover (or so Leon assumes). Because Leon does actually like spending time with Chris, and because he wants Claire to be happy that her best friend and her brother are getting along (or also because he may have developed a tiny crush on Chris), Leon agrees to it.

  


Thing is, being the busy government agent he is, he’s forgotten that Chris is meant to be coming over today. Thankfully, today is one of his off days, which is why he has time to spare in the first place, but that also means that Leon expected that he’d be at home alone the entire day. He hadn’t thought twice that morning when he casually tied a small ponytail on the side of his face, ensuring his fringe was out of the way.

  


He’d only remembered the plans he made with Chris after a few good hours of chilling with the TV on. That was when Leon leaped off the couch, flying to his bedroom to grab his phone and witnessed the dozens of texts from the BSAA Captain.

  


After sending a few frantic apologies to a faintly amused Chris who’s been waiting at the carpark for at least 10 minutes, Leon sprints to the bathroom and frees his fringe - but he swears it’s glaringly obvious that he kinda just tied his hair into a ponytail. Unfortunately, it refuses to go flat, and Leon tries to pat it down for quite some time - before hearing the doorbell ring. Which is why he’s currently panicking, because he’s sure Chris is about to discover his secret.

  


The doorbell rings again, and Leon sighs, resigning himself to his fate. Well, what’s the worst that could happen? Chris laughs at him and leaves, and maybe tells Claire or something… well. Leon sure hopes he won’t lose Chris’s friendship before it even gets properly going.

  


Either way, leaving the man standing at his doorstep would be an even worse thing to do, so Leon rushes out of the bathroom and opens his front door, trying to act as nonchalant as possible. “Hey, Chris.”

  


“Hey yourself,” Chris greets him with a smile, and doesn’t seem to notice how Leon’s fighting hard to act cool and not panic over the fact that he might get exposed. “Having a good rest, huh? Sorry to interrupt, really.”

  


“Huh?” Leon leans against the doorway, completely missing how Chris’s eyes dip down to his legs before resting back on his face.

  


“Thought you were sleeping before I woke you up with my texting?” Chris asks, but before Leon can say anything, he frowns and leans in a little closer and Leon nearly  _ dies _ . “Your hair’s even kinda messy, you telling me that’s not a bedhead?”

  


He tentatively reaches out and pushes Leon’s fringe away from his face, and Leon  _ refuses _ to lose his dignity any more than he already has, so he bites back a whimper at his crush touching him and tries to change the subject. “I mean, can you blame me?”

  


“Of course not,” Chris chuckles as Leon steps back to let him in. “Importance of a good night’s rest, yeah?”

  


For the rest of the time that they spend at Leon’s house, Chris doesn’t bring up anything about his hair anymore, and when Leon finally waves Chris goodbye, he’s actually sad to see him go. He and Chris have a lot more in common than he’d originally thought, and maybe - just maybe - he thinks that they might have a chance at being more than friends. But again, it’s too soon to say.

  


Leon’s been so relaxed the entire time with Chris that he actually forgets that the ponytail panic incident happened. Until he goes to take a shower and sees the hair tie sitting innocently by the sink, and cringes all over again.

  


He doubts if Chris actually suspects anything, but all the same, he keeps the hair tie away in a drawer and quietly promises himself to be more careful about that in the future. Or maybe switch to something more inconspicuous. He’ll think about it.


	2. Hairclip

After the panic that Leon had from the first time, he arranged for them to meet up outside instead to avoid a similar incident. For the next few times they met, they’d gone outside for lunch, dinner, once Leon had managed to drag Chris to an arcade, and another time Chris actually persuaded Leon into watching a movie with him. (He’s sure that it wasn’t meant romantically, even though it was a romcom that they watched, even though he thought Chris had been staring at him more than the screen.)

But then Leon made the mistake - okay, maybe it was deliberate - of telling Chris that he had a game console at home, and Chris insisted on coming over to try and play games on it.

Leon had just started using hair clips instead of tying his hair, but, well, they just didn’t seem to work as effectively as tying his hair did. It was probably just because his technique sucked, but while the hair clip did keep his fringe together, it didn’t seem to be able to pin his fringe down properly. As a result, it kinda ended up flopping down and in his way when Leon was trying to go through some stretches.

Leon swears his hairline’s going to recede with how hard he practically jams the hair clip into his hair, but it still keeps falling down. In hindsight, he guesses it’s because gravity just works against the small piece of plastic trying to keep his fringe up. But he still hopes that it’s just a matter of needing more practice, because at least the effects of the hair clip is less noticeable than tying a ponytail, where his hair ends up obviously fluffy. 

Chris comes over for lunch, and Leon decides, in a bid to impress the man, that he’s going to  _ cook _ a fancy lunch for them. He’s not a master chef, but he’s no novice either - Leon  _ loves _ his breakfast, and he doesn’t mind taking the time to prepare his meals from scratch if he’s free.

The thing is, the moment Leon leans over to start slicing meat, his fringe immediately falls down in front of his face.

Leon sighs.

He has to employ the use of the navy blue hair clip he bought in order to tame his fringe. Although he has to stop to readjust it every fifteen minutes or so, it’s probably better than the ponytail since it doesn’t make his hair look odd once he removes it. So as long as he remembers to take it out before Chris arrives, he’ll be good.

Of course, Leon forgets.

He might be extremely aware of his surroundings and good at multitasking due to his job, but Leon doesn’t really care for himself often. Sometimes he doesn’t notice he’s injured until the adrenaline high fades away and the medics end up scolding him for not treating his wounds earlier. Which is why, as Leon plates the two perfectly - if he does say so himself - made meals, he’s completely forgotten about the hair clip still nestled in his fringe (that’s starting to fall loose again). He’s also pretty distracted because of how nervous he feels. This is barely past his fifth time meeting Chris one-on-one, not to mention they aren’t at any status beyond just being  _ friends _ , but he desperately wants to impress the guy. In fact, Leon swears he’s getting more butterflies in his stomach just waiting for Chris to show up than he’s ever felt when he’s about to fight a monster.

Chris goes directly up to Leon’s door this time. Leon’s just finished setting the table as neatly as possible when the doorbell rings. He takes a last look at the dining table, satisfied with what he sees, and goes over to open the door.

“Afternoon, Leon,” Chris greets him, then does a double take. Leon doesn’t automatically connect it with anything wrong. He assumes Chris somehow caught sight of what Leon deems to be the magnum opus of his cooking. (Although he has cooked for some people before, he’s never actually tried this hard on presentation, or well, basically never tried so hard in general.)

“Hey, Chris,” Leon answers, grinning. “Hope you're hungry.”

“Starving,” Chris returns, the startled expression fading into a warm smile. “You ordered takeout?”

“I, uh, I cooked?” Leon says a little hesitantly. Wait, should he have just ordered something instead? Maybe Chris would prefer to just eat a pizza or something? He probably should’ve asked first before making this fancy meal, dammit- (and he doesn’t make the connection that what made Chris do a double take earlier wasn’t the food.)

Chris stares at him, eyes wide, and makes a shooing motion with his hand. Leon steps aside shyly to let Chris enter his house, where he immediately catches sight of the dining table and makes a beeline for it.

“Holy shit.” Chris sounds impressed, and Leon perks up a little, hopeful. “You - you made this entirely by yourself?”

“Do you see anyone else here?" Leon snarks, feeling a little more confident once he’s said that.

“Yeah, but I just -” Chris waves his hands faintly in the air, gesturing towards the food and then to Leon. “-Well, I’m just, speechless.”

Leon can’t help himself. The expression on Chris’s face is totally worth his two hours of slaving in the kitchen, and he starts laughing. “Well, I’m glad you like it. Better dig in before you say anything else, though.”

Chris pulls out one of the chairs, but to Leon’s great surprise, he nods at him to tell him to sit down. When Leon does so, Chris pushes the chair back in for him. Like a proper gentleman. Leon’s about ninety per cent sure that he’s blushing, if the heat in his neck and cheeks mean anything.

Chris takes a few mouthfuls of food, then he looks to Leon with an expression dangerously close to adoration. “This is  _ amazing _ !”

Leon tried to hide behind his fringe. “I- well, thanks. I'm glad you like it.”

“It's like, perfectly cooked.” Chris took another mouthful. “Heck, Leon, I know you were multi-talented, but I didn't know you were so good at-”

“Oh, stop it already, Christopher,” Leon mumbles. He already feels like he's burning up from how hot his cheeks feel, Chris smiling at him with admiration in his gaze might just set him on fire.

There's nothing but the sound of silverware for a few minutes, where both men eat in relatively comfortable silence. Leon tries to hide the fact that he's blushing behind his fringe. Having long hair really comes in handy sometimes. Although, he swears something’s a little off about it today. Maybe he should like, make sure he dries his hair properly instead of leaving it to the environment -

Then, out of nowhere, Chris looks up, with an expression of sudden understanding. “Is that why you have a hair clip in your hair?”

“I have a -” Leon stops mid-sentence, drops his fork, and slaps a hand on his hair. The small piece of plastic taunts him, and Leon groans as he drops his head onto the table. “Forget everything you just saw. Please.”

“Everything?” Chris sounds so bright and innocent that Leon kinda wants to kick him. “But that means I’ll forget your amazing cooking too. I don’t wanna miss that.”

Leon honestly thinks that he’s going to self-combust. “You - you really know how to compliment a man,” he stammers out.

“I would compliment you more, if you’d let me.”

Why, oh why did Leon just dig himself into a deeper grave than he was already in?

“Chris,” Leon murmurs, but he doesn’t know what he could possibly say to that so he just lowers his head and waits. He can feel Chris’s eyes on him. Some part of him is in mild disbelief that Chris didn’t straight up just laugh at him when he saw Leon using the hair clip to pin up his hair.

“...Honestly? I think it looks cute on you. Not many guys would pull off a look like that, but you look adorable.”

Leon is sure his soul just left his body. There is no way Chris Redfield just called him cute with that in his hair. There is  _ absolutely _ no way.

“Although I think it might look even cuter if you put on one of those hair clips with like, a flower on it…”

“Chris!”

And with that, he’s slammed back into reality quickly, but still with a blush that he’s sure reaches down to his shoulders. Chris’s smirk tells him exactly that much.

“Okay, if you’re gonna be like that, I’m never cooking for you again.”

“Aw, hey!” Chris protests, but he’s smiling. He leans over the table and gives Leon’s fringe a quick flick. “I meant it, however.”

“Yeah, well…” Leon self-consciously looks away a little, but eventually he comes back to meet Chris’s warm brown eyes. “...Thanks for that.”

He's grateful that Chris doesn't tease him in a mean way about it. In fact, Leon keeps it on for the rest of the afternoon and the evening, and Chris even playfully bats at it once or twice while they're playing games on his console. Chris only leaves after they eat dinner together, ordering takeout this time because Leon plainly refuses to go outside with the hair clip but Chris seems to like the look of it on him.

When Chris leaves that night, Leon throws the takeout boxes into the trash and flops down on the sofa, exhausted. Chris is basically a bright and energetic ball of sunshine, bringing light into Leon’s dark and gloomy life. And right now, he's serving as a distraction as Leon suddenly recalls Chris’s voice, whispering in his ear:  _ I think it looks cute on you. _

Leon groans, slapping his hands over his face, secretly glad that no one’s around to see him obsessing over a single sentence his crush said to him.  _ He thinks I'm cute. He thinks I'm cute. Oh my god I think I'm gonna die. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> although there's never been any evidence of Leon being a gamer, I just wanted to give him a hobby and the mental image of him and Chris sitting on a couch side by side playing games is just adorable. :D
> 
> hope you guys enjoy the second update!


	3. Headband

Leon now has an accomplice to help him to find accessories for his hair. Sherry, who’s essentially his adopted daughter, once asked him if his hair ever gets in his way. Which resulted in a thirty minute rant session where Leon admitted to Sherry that his fringe really gets in his way more than usual when he's at home. He even confided in her why he doesn't tie ponytails any more and has instead turned to using hair clips. Which Chris has already discovered, and even called him cute for it. Sherry had practically squealed with joy at that, even with Leon’s furious protesting (through a fierce blush) that it didn't mean anything.

Leon slightly regrets telling Sherry about his problem now, however, because she's determinedly shipped over a whole box of hair accessories for him. Leon will most definitely treat her to lunch some day to pay for however much she spent on this whole box, but that's not the main problem. He's only dug through the first few packages, and he's already finding… a great deal of stuff that would already embarrass him to no end. He didn't even tell her about Chris’s comment on how he should get hair clips with flowers on them, but it’s apparently a universal thing that everyone thinks he’d look cute with them, because Sherry bought him some. 

They are kind of cute, Leon admits to himself, turning a couple over in his hands. Some, he thinks are ridiculously large and attention-seeking, like the one with a massive rose attached on the top. But there are some smaller, more inconspicuous ones with more plainly-coloured flowers that Leon can’t name (he’s never been good with flowers.) The thing is, it’s not like Leon’s going to wear those to impress someone, so why bother?

But Sherry does have his back after all - there’s something interesting in the box. There's a headband, a nondescript navy blue one (thank goodness, Sherry). Although Leon isn’t completely sure how a headband works, it looks intuitive enough, and honestly this might actually work pretty well for his hair. He doesn’t have time right now to try it out though, Chris made a date with him (no, not a real date, Leon insists to himself, more like a playdate) to battle it out on Mario Kart. He isn’t cooking this time, Chris has offered to bring over food in exchange for Leon cooking lunch previously. That’s when Leon looks around and realises his house is in a mess.

In his defense, he got really busy and didn’t have time to tidy up after Sherry came over because of work. But he supposes that there’s no use making excuses for himself, he probably should just get started on clearing up.

He barely manages to throw the last piece of trash in the rubbish bin before Chris rings his doorbell. The excitement of seeing Chris has worn down a little so that he isn’t running on pure butterflies and nervous energy, but he still feels a grin spread across his face as he throws the door open. “Ready to get your ass kicked?”

“Don’t tell me you’ve been practicing without me, that’s not fair,” Chris complains as he steps in, nevertheless smiling as he carefully holds up two boxes of takeout.

“Life isn’t fair, Redfield,” Leon teases, taking the food from Chris and going to the kitchen to warm it up in the microwave oven. That’s when he remembers the box from Sherry, still sitting half-opened in the living room, and freezes in his tracks.

“Uh...Chris?”

“Yeah?”

Leon changes his mind just as he opens his mouth. If he tells Chris not to look at something, that might just make him look all the more suspicious, right? Maybe he can lure him into doing something else… “Just go and, erm, take a seat at the dining table or whatever, I’ll just put this in the oven real quick, don’t, like, go anywhere.”

“Mmm-kay.”

Leon switches on the microwave oven, dumps their food on a plate, and shoves it in the oven. He can’t help glancing out at the doorway as he stands there, tapping his foot impatiently. He swears three minutes of his life have never felt longer. But hey, surely Chris would say something if he actually saw the box, right?

Feeling a little more relieved that he’s convinced himself Chris hasn’t seen it, Leon carefully removes the plates from the oven using oven mitts, walks out to the dining table, and nearly dies on the spot. He doesn’t actually have a dining room, so the dining table is kinda right next to the living room. He has a full view of Chris’s ass as he’s bent over somewhere in Leon’s living room. Although that in itself would already make Leon’s jaw drop normally, that’s not what he’s shocked by. It’s the fact that Chris is bending over the box of hair accessories Sherry has mailed him.

“Uh,” Leon manages intelligently.

Chris immediately turns around at that, sees Leon staring at him, and immediately raises his hands in apology. “Shit, I - I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to go poking around in your stuff, I just - I just got curious, I’m sorry!”

Well, the thing is, Leon’s more embarrassed than angry that Chris looked at whatever was in that box. But he can’t figure out a way to say that without feeling even more embarrassed, so he mumbles “It’s fine, I’m not mad” and waves Chris over to eat.

Five minutes into their meal, Leon sets down his cutlery with a small sigh. He can’t stand the awkward atmosphere, and decides he might as well clear it if he can get Chris to start talking with him normally again. “That...uh, that box was from Sherry, I didn’t order that myself or anything, just so you know…”

Chris pauses, looking up to meet Leon’s eyes. “Oh.”

There’s a moment of silence, in which Leon really just wants to just dig himself a grave and jump in it. Then Chris’s expression changes to one of confusion. “Leon, I - are you not mad at me?”

“What? No,” Leon answers, a little confused now as well. “Why would I be?”

“I did look in your stuff without permission,” Chris says apologetically.

“Yeah… well, those aren’t private, so I don’t really mind, I just…” Leon waves his hand a little. He’s not surprised to feel heat on the back of his neck and on his cheeks. “I thought you’d think I was weird for wearing those things…”

Chris’s head shoots up. “Weird? Hell no! Man, Sherry makes good choices, I think you’d look adorable in those -”

He shuts his mouth, but Leon’s already staring at him, wide-eyed. It takes a full minute before he gets his voice to work. “Y-you think I’d look adorable?”

Chris, seemingly also unable to speak, just nodded.

Leon’s heart was thudding rapidly in his chest, practically drowning out all other noises, but the thought was clear in his mind: Chris just said he thinks I’d look cute.

“I - I mean,” Chris stammers out, and Leon immediately feels his heart sink. Of course, he’d be dumb enough to think Chris Redfield actually liked him back. “You’re already pretty cute regularly, s-so-”

This must be Heaven. No, or maybe Hell. Whatever the case, that must be the reason why Chris said that to Leon and now Leon’s just trying not to hyperventilate in his seat.

“Leon?” He gets awakened, similarly to the previous time, by Chris talking to him. “You good?”

Leon tries to smile, probably fails and does a really awkward grimace, from the way Chris is staring at him with concern. “I’m fine.” He takes a deep breath to compose himself, and grins at Chris. “Well, then you better get ready, cause I’m about to get hella gorgeous.”

He enjoys the way Chris’s jaw drops at that, as he stares at Leon.

Leon just smirks and continues eating his food like nothing happened.  
\---  
It’s Chris’s turn to think he died and went to Heaven.

Never in his life would he have thought that he’d actually get to touch Leon S. Kennedy’s hair so intimately. Leon was sitting in front of him, both of them settled peacefully on his sofa.

Although he described it as “peaceful”, he could see a light pink blush dusting Leon’s cheeks, and his own heart was thudding so quickly some part of his mind thought he was facing down a BOW.

“You know how to use that?” Leon asked hesitantly, glancing at the headband that Chris was holding out to him.

“Erm, I mean, I never used it myself,” Chris starts, and then he has to fight back a laugh as Leon glares fiercely at him.

“You're just jealous that my hair is longer and more fabulous than yours,” Leon says with a slightly arrogant air, tossing his head back.

While Chris isn't jealous - he likes his own hairstyle, personally -, he agrees that Leon’s hair is literally gorgeous. And it's just every bit as soft as Chris imagined it to be. He can confirm that firsthand now.

“I've seen Claire use these before,” he says, reaching out to gently touch Leon’s fringe. To his great relief (and delight), the other man allows him to. “Your fringe is at the side though, so I'm not too sure how well it'll work.”

Leon shrugs and dips his head anyway, allowing Chris to run his fingers through his hair. Chris may be taking an extra guilty moment to stroke Leon’s hair, but eventually he flattens his fringe as best as he can and sets the headband behind Leon’s ears.

Leon tenses, but relaxes soon and doesn't complain. Chris pushes the headband up gently, making sure that stray hairs in Leon’s face are pinned behind the headband, and lightly taps Leon on the chin once he’s done. “There you go, gorgeous.”

The agent lightly touches the headband, as if to make sure it’s there, then lightly shakes his head a little and grins when it doesn’t dislodge. “Well, that’s definitely better than a hair clip.”

“Still would look cute with those flower hair clips though,” Chris mumbles, and then dodges Leon’s punch to his shoulder. “Hey!”

“Will you shut up?” Leon growls, but he's smiling a little. 

“Actually,” Chris begins hesitantly. “Would you let me look through these remaining packages?”

Leon’s head shoots up as he stares at Chris suspiciously, then sighs and shrugs. “Well, what do I have to lose? As long as-” he shoves a finger in Chris’s face - “you keep in mind that I did not buy any of these. This is Sherry’s idea, okay?”

“Got it,” Chris smirks.

He digs around in the box as Leon quietly fusses over the headband, checking his reflection in his phone. At last he finds what he's looking for, and grins. “Hell yeah.”

Leon looks up apprehensively, and makes something almost similar to a whimpering noise when he sees what Chris is holding. “Are you serious-”

Eventually he can't say no to Chris and sits still, as Chris puts on a headband for him. The difference is that this headband has a bunch of flowers on it. Daisies interweaving with baby’s breath, set on a plain black headband, Chris thinks it provides a gorgeous contrast to Leon’s dark hair. It makes the picture all the more beautiful that Leon has a warm blush on his cheeks, painting his skin slightly pinkish.

“There now, gorgeous,” Chris teases. Privately in his heart, he seriously means it. Leon looks beautiful on a regular basis, but this gives him an even cuter appeal.

“Go away,” Leon mumbles.

For all the pretense of feeling embarrassed, Leon wears the headband for the rest of the time while Chris is around. Near nighttime when Chris has to leave, he playfully asks Leon if he’ll wear it for him next time. Chris fully expects Leon to protest or snap at him.

But to his surprise, Leon actually seems to consider the question, and he ducks his head shyly again before answering in a voice, softer than Chris has ever known it to be. “M-maybe if you like it.”

Of course, that gets Chris blushing, at the thought that Leon would do something for him because he thinks that Chris likes it. And it sets Leon off in a vibrant blush again, so the two of them just sit there in relative silence, falling harder for each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chris and Leon are FINALLY getting even closer... ;) who's to say where this Certain tension will lead?  
> hope you guys enjoyed this week's update! :D


	4. Very Long Hair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning: gets kinda hot and heavy near the end, but it's just them making out ;)

Leon’s hair has never been short by any standards. Besides the fringe that covers his own eyes, the rest of his hair is also pretty long. He’s gradually started leaving his hair longer and longer every year, until right now it’s touching the back of his neck.

But this - this is something else entirely.

Leon wants nothing more than to flop into his bed and sleep for a week, but a knock on his door forces him to stop in his trek towards his bedroom.

Suffice it to say, he’s not in a very good mood, which is why when he throws the door open he snarls a very angry “Who the fuck is it?”

He immediately regrets when he meets Chris’s startled gaze.

“Ah, fuck,” Leon swears again, at the same time that Chris immediately says, “I’m sorry-”

They stare at each there for a while, until Chris says softly, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

“N-no, you’re fine,” Leon quickly reassures him. Damn it, he's sure he's undone months of friendship and everything he’s tried to have with Chris with just that annoyed yelling. “I’m the one that should be sorry, I didn’t mean to snap at you like that…”

“It’s okay, I mean, I can understand just wanting to rest after a mission,” Chris says. Leon just wants to die because he’s being so understanding towards someone who practically just yelled at him. “I was just checking in on you, cause you didn't reply at all when I asked if you wanted to meet up, last week.”

“Yeah, that would’ve been because I was several thousand kilometres away from America,” Leon mutters.

“Oh.”

A beat of silence.

Then Chris leans in, and almost hesitantly, lifts Leon’s fringe away from his face a little. “You still awake under there?”

And Leon almost dies on the spot.

The thing is, his previous mission - the one he just returned from - had ended up being a long-term infiltration mission, and Leon had been so damn busy trying to keep up with not being exposed as well as returning info to the government side, that he hadn’t exactly had the time to find a hairdresser. He’d also gotten a shock when he reached home and looked in the mirror.

Chris also still has an expression of slight amusement and confusion, underneath the concern. That’s probably because Leon’s hair has grown so long in the time that he was away, that it now reaches past his chin. Even though his hair was long before, this is pretty much getting to the point of ridiculous.

“Don’t question me, I didn’t have the time,” Leon says before Chris can ask him about it.

Chris grins slightly. “Still looks kinda cute on you, though.”

Leon’s sure that he would’ve blushed if he was less tired. But right now, the most that he can manage is a halfhearted smile in return. “Well, good to hear you still think I’m cute with what looks like a girl’s haircut.”

Chris looks like he’s about to say something, then stops as he realises, “Oh, I’m keeping you from sleeping, aren’t I?”

Leon grunts faintly in affirmation. As much as he would absolutely love to continue talking with Chris, he feels like he’s dead asleep on his feet. “Sorry man, I - I could meet you like, in two days…?”

Chris nods slowly, but then he hesitates. Right now Leon feels like he doesn’t have the patience and time for waiting, so he sighs, “Spit it out, Redfield.”

“If you don’t mind, I could, uh, help tidy up your flat while you sleep?”

That was...definitely not what Leon was expecting.

“I, uh, I didn’t mean that you needed help with that,” Chris stumbles over his words, now blushing a vibrant red. “I just… well, I thought maybe you might be able to sleep better if you had someone you trusted around in the house, I mean, that’s how I feel after missions, so-”

God damn it. It must be the lack of sleep that’s getting to Leon, otherwise he wouldn’t be tearing up at the fact that Chris cares so much about him that he’s willing to hang around his house just to make him feel safe. He’s suddenly really thankful for the long hair that hangs well over his eyes to hide the fact that they’re suddenly wet with unshed tears.

“That would be - really nice,” Leon says, trying to hide the way his voice chokes up a little. “Thanks, Chris.”

That’s how he ends up letting Chris into his house, telling him that he’s welcome to anything from the TV to the kitchen - although he doubts if there’s any food that’s not spoiled.

Leon settles into bed, pulling the covers over him after handing the house over to Chris. He still feels a little bad that he basically made Chris stay over when he’s not even going to be awake to keep him company, even though Chris had assured him after all that he didn’t have any other plans for today. But he has to admit, knowing that the BSAA Captain is around does make him feel a little lighter. And not just because he may or may not have a massive crush on Chris, it’s also because he knows for a fact that Chris wouldn’t let anything happen to him.

In half an hour - the fastest he’s ever fallen asleep right after a mission - he’s drifted off.

\---  
Chris cautiously peeks into Leon’s bedroom - thankfully, he left his door open. Leon looks surprisingly peaceful in his sleep, and Chris has to stifle a laugh as the agent’s hair suddenly falls down from its precarious perch on where Leon’s head is on its side, flopping on his nose. He’s not surprised when Leon grunts, awakened even by that small movement, and rolls over to bury his head in his pillow.

He’s more surprised by the length of Leon’s hair than disgusted, or anything. Leon looks beautiful no matter what his hair looks like. Then Chris feels a little guilty that he's having this kind of thoughts about his friend while he’s sleeping.

Chris sighs and quietly backs out of Leon’s bedroom. He decides that he might as well help Leon out a bit on his obviously neglected house-cleaning duties while he's here.

About four hours later, Chris sighs, drags himself off the couch where he’s been dozing off, and sets off on his objective. He manages to find a broom and dustpan and sets to work, sweeping up - well, there’s not much really, Leon’s a relatively neat person. It’s mostly just dust that’s accumulated in his time away. He’s not sure how much time he spent doing that, but eventually he only looks up when he hears a soft chuckle behind him.

Leon’s awake - Chris kind of wants to insist that he should go back to sleep, but he recognises the wide-awake, haunted look in his eyes and doesn’t try to push it. “What’s up?”

The agent leans against the wall, his extra-long bangs actually doing pretty well in framing his face, but they definitely don’t hide the smirk on his face. “Nothing, I just thought I’d never see the day where Chris Redfield does my household chores for me.”

“I can stop, if you want,” Chris jokes, but he continues sweeping up dust anyway. “A sight to behold, isn’t it?”

“Sure is,” Leon answers, and Chris can practically hear him grinning. He starts to walk over to Chris, then accidentally trips over the corner of his coffee table.

“Woah!” Chris automatically drops the broom to grab Leon by the arms. The agent tips over in his arms, grabbing his biceps to keep his balance, and looks up. Steel-blue eyes meet brown, before Leon murmurs, “I wish I would see you being domestic in my house more often.”

Was that - was that a -

Chris’s thoughts are stuttering over the fact that his crush basically admitted that he would've loved to lead a domestic life with him. “I-”

Leon blinks at him, and they stay in that position, staring at each other until he seems to suddenly come back to his senses. Immediately he pulls away from Chris, looking mildly embarrassed. “I - uh, forget I said anything.”

This is probably the cue for Chris to make a move, or at the very least make some comment about how he very honestly would not mind living the domestic life with Leon Kennedy every day, but instead he only weakly splutters out, “Er - you - hey, Leon, I think - I think you should, uh, cut your hair, you know?”

Leon’s expression momentarily shutters, then Chris immediately backtracks and tries to not miscommunicate his thoughts, “I don't want you to miss out on seeing me do things for you, you know?”

Chris knew he'd said the right thing when Leon’s eyes lit up momentarily, followed by a deep blush as he mumbled, “Yeah, I suppose cutting my hair would also help me not fall into your arms like a damsel in distress.”

“Actually-” Chris paused, grinning a little. “That's a good point, leave your hair long.”

Leon slaps his arm, but admittedly with not that much force. “I can totally trip and fall over any time, if you're there to catch me.”

Maybe it's because Leon faced some shit in his mission and decides to be a little more open while he still has life in him - Chris is more than familiar with that sentiment - but he's being oddly flirty as well. Not that Chris isn't happy to oblige.

Leon (reluctantly, or maybe that’s just Chris’s wishful thinking) pulls away from Chris’s sort-of-embrace with a small smile. “I, well, I’m going to go and shower, okay? You can just leave if you want to, I’m good.”

“I think I better stay around to make sure you don’t get a concussion from hitting your head on something.”

Leon smirks a little. “I'm starting to think you’re finding excuses to stay over, Chris.”

“What can I say,” Chris shrugs, “you do have a spare bedroom?”

He knows that logically, Leon probably can’t hear his heart beating at what feels like a thousand miles per hour in his chest. But he still grins nervously when Leon stares at him.

And that’s how Chris ends up sitting on the edge of Leon S. Kennedy’s bed, with the man in question settled cross-legged on the floor with his back to Chris, letting Chris blow-dry his hair with a hairdryer.

Leon’s eyes are half-closed as he allows Chris to stroke through his hair, as if he’s combing it, going methodically from one section of hair to another. He seems to be enjoying it so much that at one point, when he lets out a soft, contented sigh, Chris practically just melts.

Chris does end up staying overnight, even though his comment on Leon having a spare room was...kind of a joke, the man didn’t chase him out. The next morning, as he watches Leon cook breakfast while pinning up his hair - using the headband with flowers, no less -, Leon reassures him, “I’ll be going to the barber’s soon to trim it.”

“Well, that’s unfortunate,” Chris says, leaning forward with a mischievous grin. “Can I at least take a photo as a keepsake?”

He sees Leon’s face flush bright red - and probably not because he just started grilling some slices of bacon. 

“No photos, Redfield, before I know it I’ll have all the girls swooning over my long hair.”

“I’m sure all the girls already swoon over you, Kennedy.”

“Well, yeah, but…” Leon flips the bacon to grill the other side, and turns his stunning blue eyes on Chris. “But what about the guys?”

Chris’s heart stops. “I think I do know of at least one or two guys that probably have a crush on you,” he says carefully.

“How can you be sure?” Leon asks, and now he’s moved away from the bacon that he knows will take a while more to be fully cooked. He’s standing directly in front of Chris now, opposite the kitchen counter that separates them. God, Chris thinks his eyes really are beautiful. “You know them yourself?”

There’s a mischievous, cunning sort of sparkle in those eyes, that almost seems to be daring Chris to do something. So Chris takes a deep breath to steel himself, and prays that he’s not misreading Leon.

“Yeah, I happen to be one of those guys.”

Leon’s smiling at him. Chris thinks he might just die from happiness, he’s never seen Leon smile so brightly before and with his features not hidden partially by his hair, he’s even more gorgeous than usual. He watches, entranced, as Leon leans in closer, breathes out a hushed “Good”, grasps Chris by the chin, and pulls him into a kiss.

It’s all gentle and soft, until Leon’s self control breaks first. He scrambles onto the kitchen counter - thankfully empty since Chris just got rid of all the trash on it last night - and tugs Chris firmly against him. Chris complies with the unspoken order, running his hands along Leon’s waist as the man shivers beneath him, meeting parted lips with his own. Leon buries his hand in Chris’s short buzz-cut and growls frustratedly into his mouth when he’s unable to find leverage, settling for having his hand on the base of Chris’s head instead. Chris gladly has no such problem, grabbing handfuls of Leon’s hair and pulling him closer. Their kiss is hot and messy, Leon’s tongue sliding over Chris’s teeth as Chris tilts his head backwards, inviting Leon deeper into his mouth. The smaller man takes the invitation without hesitation, and Chris thinks he might drown in the sheer euphoria of it all.

Obviously, that’s when his clumsy hands accidentally knock the headband from where they’re exploring Leon’s soft hair. It falls in between their faces, and both of them jump apart, surprised. Nervously, Chris searches Leon’s unreadable expression, only to have his heart melt when he hears Leon start to giggle.

“Really should’ve done that earlier, Chris,” Leon chuckles, pulling off the headband entirely and running his fingers through his hair to get it back into its usual style. Chris longs to do it for him.

“Would you let me make up for it in future?” Chris asks hopefully.

To his delight, Leon smiles and leans in again to give him a peck on the lips. “If you can prove yourself to be a good boyfriend for me, I don’t see why not.”

Boyfriend. Chris is sure he’s grinning like an idiot now as he processes the words, turns them over slowly in his head. Dating Leon S. Kennedy.

Leon smiles back at him, before his eyes suddenly widen and he spins on his heel - oh. Their breakfast lays forgotten in the frying pan, and Leon rushes to remove it from the fire. “Oh shit. Erm, hope you don’t mind that the bacon’s a little overcooked.”

“Good enough for me.”

The slightly charred bacon is accompanied by scrambled eggs and sausages. Leon shoos him towards the dining table, where Chris can’t resist grabbing at Leon’s ass and earns a yelp and glare for it.

“Try that again another time, when I’m not holding two breakable plates.”

“I’ll hold you to that.”

Leon’s intense blue eyes meet his, and Chris reads a challenge in those eyes. Man, he still isn’t sure how checking up on Leon after a week of radio silence suddenly led to him touching Leon’s hair intimately, kissing him, and even asking him out, but he’s not complaining one bit.

“I look forward to it, Redfield.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yep, this one has more of Feelings are Uncovered than actual talk about Leon’s ridiculously long hair. but on the other hand WOO FINALLY SOME CONFESSION ACTION.  
> don't ask me about the layout of Leon's house, I have no idea either xD


	5. Surprise!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas everyone!! I’ll be uploading a Chreon’s Christmas fanfic later to celebrate xD unfortunately since I spent more time than anticipated writing the Xmas fanfic, the last update to this fic might come a little late, hope you guys understand! happy holidays to all :D

Although Chris assumes that he and Leon are pretty much already dating - Leon has never been one much for heart-to-heart confessions beyond what he admitted to Chris that time -, he still wants to make this official. So, regardless of what Leon thinks, he’s going to confess to him again,  _ properly _ this time.

He can already hear Leon scoffing at the - what the agent would probably call a  _ nauseatingly romantic _ gesture, but he’s determined to do it. He’d even gone as far as to call up his baby sister on what she would deem a proper confession, although she’d vetoed all his ideas of romantic moonlight walks and proposals by calling him old-fashioned. Okay, maybe Chris was indeed an old-fashioned romantic, but hey, what was wrong with that?

The next day, Chris finds himself browsing gun shops, wondering if Leon would appreciate a new weapon to add to his already massive arsenal. Although he doubts if Leon actually keeps any of them, seeing how he’s only ever noticed his faithful handguns hanging around in his house.

Would Leon prefer a beautiful Magnum gun, or Magnum as in the ice cream? Chris muses.

Chocolate? Chris wonders, wandering down the aisles of supermarkets. Leon doesn’t seem much like a chocolates kinda guy, more of a “bottle of spirits” guy but Chris doesn’t exactly want to encourage his drinking habit, he already saw way too many bottles stashed around when he tidied Leon’s house.

Chris even debates buying Leon a new jacket, considering how he’s always wearing a new one for every mission - and every time Chris has seen him out of the house recently. He probably loses a good number because of missions, with them getting lost or dirty. But eventually he concedes that 1) he doesn’t know Leon’s size and he’s terrible at estimations, and 2) he’d rather not risk buying a style or a brand that Leon doesn’t like, since he hardly knows anything about leather jackets. He would love to get Leon something for his hair, but not only did Leon pretty much just get a whole box of them from Sherry, he would likely kick Chris in the balls at this stage of their relationship, and Chris does not want to spend the rest of the day curled up in pain at Leon’s feet.

Eventually, a few days later, Chris turns up at Leon’s doorstep. He briefly considered wearing a formal suit, and inviting Leon out to a fancy restaurant, but eventually decided that the other agent would most likely hate such a flamboyant event. Instead, Chris was just decked out in semi-formal attire, holding a bouquet of roses in one hand and a gift in the other.

He knocks on the door and stands there nervously, waiting. Then comes the sound of shuffling behind it, before Leon’s voice calls out, “Who’s that?”

“It’s me,” Chris answers, before adding, “Chris.”

“...Goddamn it. Not now. What did you want to see me for?”

“It’s a surprise,” Chris teases, hefting the bouquet into his arms. “Open the door and you’ll know.”

“Geez, Redfield. As much as I’d love to see what  _ surprise _ it is that has you sounding all excited, I’m not exactly, um, presentable right now.”

Chris frowns in confusion. “What, are you naked right now or something? Couldn’t you just put on some clothes and -”

“No! Okay, I mean, maybe, but the clothes aren’t an issue right now. I, uh…” A sigh sounds from behind the door. “I went to get my hair cut, but my usual hairstylist wasn’t there, so, well, they kinda ended up giving me a… well, let’s just say it doesn’t look pretty.”

Chris starts to smile, stifling laughter behind his free hand. “So, you’re too afraid to open the door to let me see you with an unflattering haircut?”

“Yes!”

“Oh come on Kennedy, no matter how much everyone jokes about it, your damn hair doesn’t define who you are. You can’t look that bad.”

A moment of silence. Then, “I’m afraid it’s that bad.”

“How’s that possible?” Before Leon can reply, Chris cheekily adds, “You know, I’d only be able to judge it if I saw it for myself.”

There’s an exasperated sigh from behind the door, and Chris grins as he can almost imagine Leon running a frustrated hand through his hair - well, or through whatever weird hairstyle he’s sporting right now. But he knows Leon well enough to expect the resigned, “Fine, I’ll go throw some clothes on, be right back.”

That leaves Chris shifting his weight anxiously from one foot to the other, rehearsing his mental speech. Eventually he hears the sound of footsteps again as Leon unlocks the door and opens it.

Well. Forget the dramatic confession.

Chris nearly drops everything he’s holding, while Leon’s expression shifts from embarrassed and annoyed to a mask of pure shock and surprise as his gorgeous blue eyes rest on the bouquet in Chris’s hands. “C...Chris?”

That jars Chris to remember what he came here for, but he can’t help himself. Chris starts laughing, bending over and wheezing while Leon’s startled expression morphs back into mild irritation and he folds his arms, standing in front of Chris in his doorway, but he doesn’t say a word.

“Oh god, Leon, I’m sorry,” Chris manages to gasp out through peals of laughter. “You still look beautiful, I swear.”

Instead of the gorgeous hair that usually hangs past Leon’s ears, his hair is closely cropped, barely a couple of inches long. It resembles Chris’s own hairstyle more than anything that used to be his own hairstyle, and vaguely Chris wonders how the hairstylist managed to mess up  _ that _ badly. Then he questions if the hairstylist is even still alive, if Leon didn’t visit their full wrath on them after what they did to his beautiful hair.

“Fuck you,” Leon snarls, patting his hair, as if just checking if his new hairstyle could somehow just be a hallucination. “I told you it was bad.”

“Leon, I said you’re still beautiful and I meant it.”

That would’ve been a moving line, if Chris hadn’t gotten another eyeful of Leon’s pitiful expression and burst out laughing again at the end of it.

“I’m going to slam this door in your face right now.”

“Hey!” Chris wedges his foot against the door before Leon can make good on his promise. “Hey, wait, I came for uh, stuff.”

“...Stuff.”

Leon’s not dumb, Chris knows he’s probably guessed his intentions from the moment he saw what Chris was holding. But he’s holding his poker face well, even without the curtain of hair to hide his expression from him.

“Yeah. Uh…” Chris fumbles with his words, whatever script he’d been planning earlier falling to pieces, and settles for a simple, “Leon S. Kennedy, would you do me the honour of going out with me?”

Even while looking extremely disgruntled, Leon’s hard stare could still unnerve any battle-hardened veteran, and Chris feels a shiver going down his spine. Then Leon sighs, runs his hand through his butchered haircut, and eventually nods. “Well, if you saw this and you’re not running away in terror, I have to hand it to you. So...yes.”

“Damn it Leon, you couldn’t just say yes like any other normal guy?”

That’s exactly when Chris notices that - Leon is blushing.  _ Leon S. Kennedy _ is blushing. His heart skips a beat.

“Also,” he adds before Leon can make some snappy comeback, “these are for you.” He hands Leon the bouquet of roses and the gift-wrapped box, and Leon’s eyes suddenly get a little wet. He hides it with a quick cough, before hesitantly taking both gifts from him.

“Thank you,” he says, his voice soft, and Chris wants to embrace him there and then, but holds back in case he crushes the flowers. “Uh...want to come in?”

Chris agrees, and Leon lets him in before closing the door. The younger man starts looking for a vase or container of some sort to put the roses in, and Chris finds himself just...admiring him. He looks like he just grabbed the most convenient things to put on to greet Chris, which would explain why he’s wearing just a white hoodie and a pair of navy blue pants. Honestly, Chris had never thought Leon to be the type to even  _ own _ a hoodie.

But he’s not complaining. Not when the relatively low neck of the hoodie shows off just enough of Leon’s skin that Chris has to fight to not outright stare at him. Vaguely Chris wonders if Leon  _ deliberately _ buys tops that are low-cut, just because he knows how damn irresistible he is. Remembering his outfit from when Chris ran into him in China, he wouldn’t doubt it.

Eventually Leon starts to admit defeat and glances hesitantly at the wine cabinet. “D’you think I could put these in wine bottles?”

“Only if you have a dozen empty bottles, and no, I’m not letting you drink all that in one shot.”

Leon considers that, then picks up a glass, fills it with some water, and very carefully places the roses inside. The glass tips sickeningly - Chris almost rushes over - but Leon leans the roses against the wall and manages to balance it. Just barely.

“Well, that’s one fix for now,” Chris murmurs.

“Still doesn’t fix this  _ goddamned hair _ issue-”

Chris longs to tease him by ruffling said hair, but he wants to leave Leon’s apartment alive, so he restrains the urge. “It’ll grow back, Leon, and then you can get a proper hairstylist who knows what they’re doing.”

“That’s the whole-!” Leon bursts out in unrestrainable rage, seems to get it under control, and continues in a more measured tone, “I usually go to a single hairstylist that I trust to actually,  _ get it right _ , but turns out she was sick that day so this guy promised me he had it “under control”, and then I fall asleep for a few minutes and this shit is what I get!”

Chris’s laughter rings throughout the house. “You poor thing.”

“I  _ hate _ this god-forsaken haircut or hairstyle, whatever, no one with any proper taste would even want this. What was he even thinking?!”

Chris snorts, then does a double take. “Uh...Leon. That hairstyle is basically what I have, you know that?”

There’s a long moment of silence, then Leon whimpers faintly and buries his face in his hands, not even bothering to hide the sound any more. “Why.”

Chris’s lungs burn from laughing so hard - he doesn’t think he’s laughed any harder in the past few months than he has today. Face flushed red, Leon eventually lifts his gaze defiantly to meet Chris’s. “Okay, I didn’t mean that your hair sucks, or - or you have bad taste - fuck, I really messed up.”

“Calm down, it’s okay,” Chris says, still unable to wipe the grin off his face. “I get it.”

“You...well, I mean, it suits you well. Although, yeah, I dunno, it looks really uniform, but...yeah.”

“Constructive criticism duly noted,” Chris responds with a small smirk. “Well, sit down and stop jabbering because I still have another gift for you.”

Leon blinks, surprised, and Chris can see the red glow on his cheeks. “ _ Another _ ? You’re really making me feel bad for being underprepared here.”

“That’s okay, I just wanted to spoil you,” Chris says, grinning broadly. He quietly thanks the heavens that he didn’t buy Leon anything for his hair, otherwise he might’ve ended up with a few broken ribs. “Here you go.”

Leon sits down and takes the gift-wrapped box from him tentatively. “What is it?”

“A gift for your favourite vehicle.” He sees Leon’s eyes light up immediately. “Well, I hope that I got the right one.”

“I trust that you did.” Excitement is clearly visible in the younger male’s eyes as he flips the box over in his hands. “Thanks...thanks so much, Chris. And, uh, thanks for not running away the moment you saw me. But before you say anything,” he warns, lifting a finger before Chris can speak, "I'm going to say that I absolutely refuse to take one step outside of this house until my hair grows back. And nothing that you say can change that.  _ Nothing. _ ”

Chris can’t possibly fight him on this one, he knows. Leon S. Kennedy is even more stubborn than a mule, even on his best days, and nothing short of a zombie apocalypse would make him show this haircut to other people. So he shrugs, giving in, and suggests, “Well, what about I make dinner for us then?”

“...You know how to cook, Redfield? I didn’t think you were capable of anything beyond reheating frozen food.”

Leon is absolutely and completely right.

That’s the reason why for the rest of the day, instead of going out anywhere, he and Leon end up bonding by having the DSO agent teach him how to cook. Except, it’s more of Leon talking mostly to himself while Chris stares at his ass and wonders if he’s allowed to make good on his promise to grope him when he’s not holding anything breakable.

“...Chris! Are you listening?”

“Huh?” Chris has to tear his gaze away from the amazing curves Leon sports. “Sorry, I-”

Leon rolls his eyes, makes to toss his hair and then looks like he’s going to break down. Quickly Chris grabs Leon by the hips, pulling him closer. “Look at it as if we have, uh, matching couple hair or something, alright? It’ll grow back anyway, yeah?”

“Matching couple hair is  _ not _ a thing,” Leon sighs, but he shrugs. “Anyway, my eyes are up here, but I guess I can’t blame you for staring at that instead.”

“Can I touch it?”

“I don’t put out on the first date, Redfield!”

Even though they’d just made out on the kitchen counter barely a week ago, Leon’s acting uncharacteristically shy, his cheeks flaring bright red and barely making eye contact with Chris. Possibly, Chris assumes, because of his new hairstyle.

“Come on, it’s not like I’ve never had an unflattering haircut in my day, and you still look amazing,” Chris reassures him, resting his hand on Leon’s shoulder and gently rubbing his skin with his thumb. “Unless you’re uncomfortable with it, then I’ll stop immediately-”

“No!” Leon says immediately, then cringes. “I - I want to, but, I’d totally understand if you don’t want to look at me for the next few months.”

Chris can see that he has a lot of work to do to convince Leon that he’s still worth loving no matter what, but he supposes he’ll start here. He knows Leon isn’t one to be easily convinced by words alone, so he lets his gaze rest on Leon’s face before kissing him deeply.

And Leon sighs softly, nuzzling into Chris’s arms and closing his eyes. “Yeah, I get it...thanks.”

They share dinner at Leon’s dining table and play some games afterwards, which ends in them making out on the couch, Leon’s hair disaster temporarily forgotten with Chris lavishing attention across his powerful thighs and well-toned chest. As promised, Leon still doesn’t actually let him go any further than that, but when Chris finally gathers up some courage to ask if he would let him stay over, Leon actually agrees.

This time, he somehow ends up in Leon’s bed - thankfully a king-size - with him and the other man in question lying on opposite sides, backs to each other. Yet, when Chris wakes up in the morning, he finds Leon entangled with him, his body curled into Chris’s. When he attempts to gently pat Leon’s head, he sleepily mutters a few swear words directed at his hairstyle and snatches Chris’s hand out of his hair to hold in his own before settling back to sleep.

Chris finds that he cares nothing for how Leon looks, if he can have him snuggled up against him like this every morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what was Leon doing being all naked? Idk :D  
> I am So sorry for doing this to you Leon... XD  
>   
> wow we’re almost at the last chapter! thank you so much to everyone for your support along the way!! :) perhaps I’ll consider adding a bonus chapter if there’s more Chreon shenanigans that I want to write,,,or maybe a little smut,,, xoxo
> 
> also I just got a Tumblr at @fyreandlightning! dk what I’ll be posting but it’s likely to be chreon shitposts/AO3 updates, so follow me if you wanna see those or if you just wanna hang out and chill! :D


	6. Claire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm back guys!!sorry about being late this time oops  
> future updates will probably also be less on time because the previous chapters were pre-written, but I promise I'll finish this fic eventually :D
> 
> also special thanks to cozycatwriter for this idea!! it's a lovely idea and I hope I carried it out well xD

It took an unbelievably long time, but eventually Leon could look in the mirror and recognise the person in it as himself. His hair had grown back out to resemble something more like what he had in his twenties, which was a huge relief.

Chris was starting to become a permanent installation in Leon’s life, something that he had originally feared but was steadily losing any bad feelings towards it. Any concern about being overly reliant on Chris had been lost to the trust he had in him, and also the fact that Chris was pretty much a big bumbling teddy bear, who had showed him nothing but genuine concern and warmth.

Dammit, Leon was becoming a sap himself. Clearly it was Chris’s influence on him.

True to his word, he refused to go out and pretty much ordered takeout or groceries delivered to his home for meals. Although he did keep in contact with Sherry and Claire with voice calls, he dodged every video call on purpose, firing off excuses. It pleased him greatly that - as it turned out, any excuse regarding Chris was instantly accepted. 

In his own defense, some of them were actually true. Chris, as Leon’s only contact during this period, seemed to have taken it upon himself to spend extra time with him, as his _boyfriend_ , nonetheless. Although most of Chris’s stupid romantic date ideas were shot down since they required Leon to leave the house, he was still insistent, and finally Leon indulged him. Movie dates were a constant, even though Leon wasn’t particularly a big fan of movies, he made exceptions for Chris. Besides, he got to snuggle up against Chris’s massive bulk when they did and eat popcorn that he bought, so he wasn’t against it.

He tried to teach Chris how to cook properly, but after three unsuccessful tries of getting Chris to make French toast that just ended up in burnt toast, he pretty much left Chris to his own devices while he made the meals. Leon wasn’t sure whether to be heartened or to be mildly horrified that Chris actually persisted. He was proud, however, when Chris produced a mildly-edible poached egg. Even if the yolk was so cooked that it was hardly runny.

The only time he left the house was when Chris spent a good five days persuading him to go stargazing with him. Leon had only agreed when Chris promised him that they would stay in his car the whole time, and that they would only be outside after 1am, where most people were off the streets. He had to admit, he’d enjoyed cuddling up to Chris in the back of his jeep, letting Chris point out constellations to him, although most of the time he was more fixated on Chris’s warm, comforting scent wrapped around him.

Chris seems to love his hair, no matter what style it’s in. Unfortunately that means Chris ruffling his hair in this style, which kind of sends Leon into fits.

“Sorry Leon,” Chris apologises one day when Leon quite instinctively squirms away from his hands. “I’m not making fun of you, I swear.”

“Gah, yeah, I know…” Leon tries to make up for it by taking Chris’s hand, to show that he’s not mad at him. “Promise you when my hair grows back you can pet me all you want.”

He tries not to blush at the way Chris’s eyes light up at that.

***

“For _who_?”

Claire is absolutely sure that she's hearing things. Or maybe Sherry’s just playing a prank on her. 

“Yeah, I know, I mean, it makes sense! His hair’s so long I'm surprised he can fight like that.”

The redhead can't quite come to reconcile the image of the hardened agent and the image of Leon Kennedy tying his hair in a ponytail. Back in his 20s, sure, maybe, but now with that fierce look he sported?

“You got any photos? I’m not believing you without evidence.”

“I wish, I’m sure he would physically grab the phone away from me. Anyway, since you have long hair, I wanted to ask you what suggestions you have to help.”

It’s not that Claire thinks Sherry would lie to her. It’s just that she can’t quite imagine it - although yes, Leon would definitely look adorable in it, it just sounds so out of character for him.

Claire gives Sherry a list of common hair accessories - headbands, hair ties, barrettes, and when she hangs up Claire just puts down the phone and stares at her ceiling for a bit. Leon? Of all people? Looking for hair accessories?

It’s probably more likely that Sherry asked for hair accessories for someone else, but who? Sherry has short hair, unless she grew it long? Not likely. Her boyfriend Jake? He practically doesn’t have hair, Claire recalls. Who else?

Well, maybe Sherry’s just curious about what to do if she wants to grow long hair. Claire makes a mental note to call Leon someday though, and see if he wants to go out for a meal.

***

Chris’s hugs are always the best. Claire’s always happy to be on the receiving end of them.

She knows that her brother recently started dating Leon, and considering how long she’s known them to have a crush on each other, she couldn’t be more relieved. And yes, also happy for them. She can't help feeling that a person like Chris is exactly what Leon needs, and in turn Leon's affections make Chris happy too (with how rarely they’re given). Recently Leon has been telling her that he's spending a lot of time with Chris, which probably explains why he keeps taking leave from work. Not that Claire minds. If anything, it's about time her brother - and Leon - thought about retiring, or something. They've saved the world enough times.

“How have you been?” Chris says affectionately, clasping Claire in a bone-crushing hug which she happily returns. “Have you been eating and sleeping well?”

“Really well,” Claire reassures him, grinning. “And you? How's your boyfriend?”

Several months into their relationship - and Chris still blushes whenever someone refers to Leon as his boyfriend. Claire rolls her eyes at his predictable reaction, ushering him into the house.

“I’ve...learned to cook” is what comes out from her brother’s mouth next.

Claire can’t help it. She laughs, turning around to fully face Chris, whose face is bright red. “So Leon gets you to learn something I haven’t been able to for years?”

“Uh,” Chris flounders. Claire isn’t actually angry at all, but it’s still kind of funny to see Chris struggling to defend himself. “To be fair, I still haven’t been able to actually produce anything...of very high quality.”

They order takeout to Claire’s house, and sit around talking about their jobs and whatever they’ve missed updating each other on - in Chris’s case, Claire is more than excited to hear about his relationship with Leon. Oddly, Leon seems to be avoiding meeting her in person, and there’s only so much information she can get from over the phone. Chris isn’t the type to overly gush about details either, but Claire gets enough out of him to know for sure that they’re both happy.

“Oh, there is something I wanted to ask you,” Chris says as they’re finishing their dinner, then blushes scarlet. Claire’s interest is immediately piqued and she shifts closer, playfully smirking at her older brother.

“About how to court Leon? I’m sure you’ve already swept him off his feet so many times, he ought to get checked for concussions.”

“No - although it is about Leon -” Chris seems to fight a strong wave of embarrassment, and eventually locks his eyes on the table instead of meeting Claire’s teasing gaze. “I wanted to ask you...er… about...hair stuff.”

_Hair stuff??? Where did that come from??_

“Why are you asking about that? You’ve never given a damn about your hair other than going through hair gel brands like insane - Are you trying to get Jill a present or something? I doubt she -”

“No, uh… it’s...it’s actually about Leon.”

Chris sees her expression, and rushes on as quickly as possible. But he doesn’t get anywhere. “I, uh, okay, hear me out, right? I don’t know if Leon has actually told you himself, but he...well, his hair’s too long so he sometimes uses stuff like hairbands and clips to hold it back. So recently, his hair grew back - _I mean,_ his hair grew longer - and well, I…”

Even though Claire was seriously fighting hard to not start laughing, she had enough presence of mind to be confused. “Okay, so you’re here telling me that Leon wears his hair in ponytails or whatever embarrassing thing he does. Sure. Other than giving me blackmail material, what are you asking me for?”

She didn’t think it was remotely possible, but Chris somehow blushes even harder. “Uh...I just wanted to know if there was anything else I could do for his hair, I guess…?”

Claire takes that to mean “I want to play with his hair, but he’s a little shy about it and I just wanna know what things I can do to make his hair even prettier”. It’s even harder to keep a straight face now, but she tries to think of something.

“You could braid his hair?” she suggests. The thought of Leon S. Kennedy with his hair braided down one side kind of reminds her why she had a crush on him back when they were younger. His ethereal beauty is basically unmatched by anyone in existence. Then she remembers that Chris has probably barely seen a girl with braided hair, much less know how to braid hair.

Chris takes a moment to try and picture it, and Claire knows when he gets the image because that’s when his eyes widen significantly. “...Ah. Uh, Claire, I don’t know how to braid -”

“How about hairclips? I know some really cute ones with baby’s breath flowers on them. Well, Leon probably won’t be too happy about that, but -”

“Er, actually, Sherry already sent him some, so that’s probably covered.”

Sherry - It’s at that point when Claire remembers their conversation weeks ago. Oh god, so she was actually telling the truth about getting Leon hair stuff. She just couldn’t believe that Leon was actually into it.

“Did he actually wear them?” Claire demands. A look of trepidation comes over Chris’s face, like he knows what she’s going to ask next. “Oh my god, he did? You should’ve sent me photos! I would pay real money to see that!”

“You should bribe Leon himself, not me,” Chris protests. “Also, do you really want your brother to disregard his safety in order to get you a picture of Leon?”

“You’re his boyfriend, he wouldn’t kill you on the spot at least,” she fires back.

Chris throws his hands up in the air. “Everyone wants pictures of Leon Kennedy now. Jeez, what am I, his publicity manager or something?”

Claire gives her brother puppy-dog eyes, knowing that he can’t ever say no to her. “Pleeeeease, big brother? I’ll teach you to braid his hair if you send me just one photo of him with a braid. Pleeeease?”

“It’s...it’s literally not up to me,” he grumbles, but eventually relents. “I suppose I’ll try to get just one photo if he doesn’t murder me for it.”

Claire grins evilly and throws her arms around Chris. “I’ll teach you how to braid immediately, don’t you worry!”

***

“You want to _what_ my hair??”

“Braid,” Chris repeats, although Leon had heard him perfectly well the first time. “You know what that looks like, right?”

“No - I mean, yes, I know what that looks like, but -” _Him?_ Braiding his hair? “I just - Where did you get this idea from?”

He plays for time, knowing that Chris can’t possibly have thought of this on his own, and he’s proven right when Chris blushes and looks down at the ground. “Uh...Claire.”

“...You mean, Claire knows.”

“In my defense -” Chris sees the look on Leon’s face and flips over the sofa, where both of them were nestled in. The only object in Leon’s hands at the moment is a pillow, but he knows that anything and everything can turn into a deadly weapon when wielded by Leon Kennedy. Leon turns around slowly to look at his boyfriend cowering behind the sofa, using it for cover. “I’m pretty sure Sherry already told her about it because she didn’t even look surprised -”

“You told her about it.”

“Leon! Please!”

Smoothing back his recently grown-back fringe, Leon takes a deep breath to remind himself to not kill his boyfriend, best friend, or adoptive daughter. After all, they’ve supported him through some of his worst times. But - 

“I didn’t tell her about your haircut, though! I just mentioned that you liked to...uh… style your hair?”

Leon pauses briefly. That’s minimally better, he thought Claire had known that he had his hair shaved almost completely off. But still.

“Guess I should’ve expected it,” he sighs in defeat, dropping the death glare and putting down the pillow. Chris’s eyes went to it, as if expecting Leon to pick it up again and smother him with it. “Don’t you ever dare do that again.”

“No, sir,” Chris replies immediately. “Does - does this mean I can come back now?”

Leon glares at him, making him instantly shrink back, but eventually grunts and pats the sofa. “Come back.”

He’s quick to bury his face in Chris’s chest when he comes back to the sofa, so that he doesn’t see the way Leon blushes at the thought of braiding his hair. It would look kind of nice, probably. He’d probably have to watch many instructional videos to learn it, but -

“Sooo… will you let me braid your hair?”

Leon swings around to stare at the taller man, who jumps at the sudden movement thinking that Leon was going to attack him for the suggestion. But Leon doesn’t murder him (thankfully). “You know how to braid hair? Since when?”

“Er… let’s just say for a price, from Claire.”

That earns him a suspicious stare from Leon, but he eventually lets up and settles back against his boyfriend’s chest. He can’t deny that the thought of Chris braiding his hair - in the process just having to touch his hair for a long time - excites him a little.

“Fine,” he mutters, so softly that Chris can barely hear him. But he knows he has, because immediately he can feel Chris’s chest starting to shake with laughter.

***

That night, Claire calls Leon.

The first thing Leon does is scream into the phone, “CLAIRE! REALLY?”

Apart from her own laughter, she can also hear Chris’s laughter ringing from elsewhere in Leon’s house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> leon's hair growing back so quickly is impossible? yeah, well, but magical hair logic.
> 
> thank you guys all so much for your support!! as you've probably noticed I extended this by another chapter xD and maybe another? depends on if I get any additional ideas I wanna write. and yes, expect braid action next chapter :D stay tuned!
> 
> YES GUYS I WILL FINISH THIS. I SWEAR IT. I JUST NEED SOME INSPIRATION.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! please leave a comment/kudos/suggestion if you liked it! :D
> 
> you can follow me at @fyreandlightning on tumblr!


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